The French island of St. Barthélemy (commonly called St. Barts or St. Barth) covers just eight square miles. True to French custom, women may sunbathe topless on any beach, but—in contrast to French liberalism—full nudity is officially prohibited on all beaches. Nonetheless, a few beaches on the small island get some use by nude bathers, and nudity hassles seem to be non-existent on these beaches.

Anse de Grande Saline ("anse" = "cove") is one of the two established but unofficial nude beaches. The eastern end of Grande Saline is where nudists gather, but the east end is sparsely attended and there are usually just a trickle of nudists. If you keep hiking over the short stretch of rocks you'll reach a tiny, secluded micro-cove. Nudity is also the norm at the cove. Again, numbers are quite small.

The next beach west of Grande Saline is Anse du Gouverneur. Nudists are also present on this beach, likewise in small numbers, and tend to gravitate toward the more remote west end.

An important thing to know about St. Barts is that in multiple respects this island is small. It is one of the smallest islands in the Caribbean in land area and population, with only 8,500 or so residents. The tourist population is likewise small due to a limited number of hotel rooms. There are no large-scale hotels or resorts. St. Barts is known more for attracting very well-heeled travelers who rent private villas. What all this means is that St. Barts just does not have the critical mass of people necessary to sustain a really popular and well-attended nude beach. Therefore, if you visit Grande Saline or Gouverneur, don't expect a lot of naked company.

VISUAL RESOURCES

GPS: 17.8881, -62.8203

city, country  Gustavia, St. Barthélemy (France)

classification  2 (traditionally nude)

There are 10 placemarks related to these nearby sites: Anse de Grande Saline and Anse du Gouverneur.